How yoga hits all four types of exercise (recs for local places in SF?)

[mattbell]

There are four types of exercise I need:
1. Cardio
2. Muscle building
3. Balance
4. Stretching

How do my current forms of exercise stack up?
Hiking hits 1 and a bit of 2.
Rock climbing hits 2 and a bit of 1 and 4.
Snowboarding hits 3 and a bit of 2.  OK, when it comes down to it, snowboarding is more of an adrenaline rush and a physical skill than heavy exercise.  I'm usually the most winded and worn by the times when I have to push the board along the ground over long distances, as opposed to when I'm actually riding.
Physical video games (Dance Dance Revolution, Wii Fit) hit 1.
Yoga... while not quite as objectively fun as the others, manages to hit all of 1,2,3,4. 

It's kind of funny that I live in a big city full of yoga studios but I haven't tried any of them.  I've done some yoga with D over in Oakland but none in SF.  Anyone have any recommendations for yoga places in SF?  Better yet, anyone else want to join me in learning?

Comments

[proctologiste.livejournal.com]

Martial arts also fit the bill, and for me, it's more fun than yoga. Also, depending on what sort you practice can also be useful for self-defense. Alas I am equally as useless as far as recommendations for SF go, I don't know the martial arts scene here.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

Which martial arts do you practice and why?

[proctologiste.livejournal.com]

Throughout my life I have practiced the following (for at least a year each): Jiu Jitsu, Shotokan Karate, Fencing (I count it), Aikido, Hung Gar Kung Fu. I continue to practice Hung Gar on my own, especially enjoying the weapon forms. I don't do it as much as I would like to, or as I should, but when I did so with more regularity and vigor they were quite beneficial.

I started practicing martial arts at age 6 purely for the self defense aspect (bad neighborhood). But it's a combination of that and fun that cause me to continue. I like the strong purpose and sort of... feeling of utility embodied in martial arts moves. I was able to derive similar enjoyment from Bikram Yoga, but not consistently so.

I tend to pick arts that combine actually being effective (http://bullshido.net is a good source of information, though rather caustic in tone) and elegant. Bullshido has it in for Aikido pretty badly, partially because it's an art that's very easy to "fake", I considered myself knowledgeable enough at that point to verify that my instructor was the real thing (him being Japanese and fairly insane helped).

If you care nothing for effectiveness at defense a Wushu school would teach you to duplicate what you see in kung fu movies, which I think is pretty undeniably cool.

[plymouth.livejournal.com]

Maybe I just went to the wrong kind of yoga classes, but the yoga I did never involved cardio.

That said, Ed and Joanna do a yoga thing in the city on saturday mornings sometimes. Ask them. (ok don't ask Ed - he's gone for a month. but joanna is around.)

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

The yoga classes I went to often involved rapid successions of poses that required a lot of muscle strength to maintain (eg boat pose, where the abs and quads are holding up the upper and lower halves of the body).

[integreillumine.livejournal.com]

More advanced yoga is more intense, and the faster yoga definitely utilizes cardio. Most sustained or repetitive muscle-building activity elevates your heart rate enough to work your heart, and M probably doesn't need to emphasize the cardio dimension as much as someone who has, say, 20+ pounds of fat to lose (many people).

[integreillumine.livejournal.com]

Martial arts can be fun.

Oh, also, this 37yo studio gets 3/3 5-star reviews on Yelp, and is a half-mile/a dozen blocks from where you live. If I lived there, I would totally check it out: http://www.yssf.com

[(Anonymous)]

where are you getting the cardio from yoga?

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

See above comments:

The yoga classes I went to often involved rapid successions of poses that required a lot of muscle strength to maintain (eg boat pose, where the abs and quads are holding up the upper and lower halves of the body).

More advanced yoga is more intense, and the faster yoga definitely utilizes cardio. Most sustained or repetitive muscle-building activity elevates your heart rate enough to work your heart, and M probably doesn't need to emphasize the cardio dimension as much as someone who has, say, 20+ pounds of fat to lose (many people).

[integreillumine.livejournal.com]

Also, does wall-rock-climbing involve balancing? (At least of a sort?) Bouldering seemed to.

I'm also interested in trying a gymnastics-style studio down the line, once I get a bit more toned. The yoga stuff would be helpful, and it would be fun to learn to do more fun quirky stuff with my body. (I definitely have little fears and confusion around how to do or sustain hand/head stands, hand-walking, arm balances in yoga.)

[veleda.livejournal.com]

agreed martial arts for me at least is more fun, combined all the four above, plus teaches you a self-defense skill.

Zombipocalypse or GMO-caused World Famine. Self Defense is a good skill to have after the world falls apart... and even now before it does!

I'm doing an MMA currently that combines kickboxking, jui jitsu, and kung fun.

[uke.livejournal.com]

For yoga I recommend http://athayoga.com/.

If you're considering aikido (which I practice) I also have some recommendations.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

Thanks. By the way, do you know zingkotori? She used to be at the SF Aikido dojo.

[uke.livejournal.com]

I don't think we've met, other than possibly in passing at seminars or the like. There are quite a few aikido dojos in SF!

[integreillumine.livejournal.com]

And! Both the cool massage therapist I went to today, and I think independently radiantsun, like ShoeboxSF.

And said therapist also said there's a $5 pilates class on Saturday with the owner...

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

welcome back :-)